Day 73 – Crisis Response

Esther 4:1,3
When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly…In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

 Faced with the coronavirus pandemic, entering what could be the worst recession of a generation, and confronted with the reality of systemic racism, it is fair to say that our nation is in crisis. But how do we respond in this time as the people of God? 

 The book of Esther offers a blueprint of what our response should be. King Xerxes chose Esther to be his new queen. Haman, one of the royal officials, took a particular dislike to Mordecai, Esther’s relative. As a result, Haman persuaded the king to commission an edict that would annihilate the entire Jewish race. This is ethnic cleansing! This is racism in one of its most demonic forms. This was a crisis! 

In Esther 4, we find 3 ways of how the people of God responded to crisis. The first is that the people of God grieved. They tore their clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and wept, all of which are expressions of lament and grief. 

 You may be going through a personal crisis. We are all affected in some way by our national crises. Mordecai and the Jewish people offer an exemplary response: To grieve before the Lord. It is not something that can be self-manufactured. If we come to God, he does a work in us, as he grows in us a heart of compassion for others and enables us to be real with him. 

 Prayer – Lord, stir in me a heart of compassion to grieve about the crises around us and to be real with you about challenges in my own life. As I pour out my lament, I bring before you…

Tim Bateman
Gas Street Leadership Team